Lean On Me
by restless-mess
Summary: And the lines have all been drawn, I know where I belong, where I belong..' EC ; Chapter 4 posted
1. Somebody to lean on

A/N: Here's sort of a missing scene from the 'All In' episode. It begins right after the scene where the team catches Calleigh's kidnapper at 'Club Descent'.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, characters/situations belong to CSI:Miami, song is Lean On Me- (Various Artists)... me not being one of them ...:p

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"You messed with the wrong people," she said while pointing her abductor's gun back at his face, just as he had done so many times over the past two days.

As they began to handcuff him and take him away, she felt the team surrounding her and a large palm hovering over her forearm.

She turned her head away, lowering the gun, her opposite hand coming to her forehead. Her eyes squinted beneath her fingers, willing the tears not to fall.

After convincing the moisture to stay in, she removed her hand still feeling the warmth covering her arm. She watched as Horatio flashed her a sympathetic smile as he and Tripp made their way outside, both following in the direction of her abductor.

She turned back, her mind slowly gaining curiosity towards the constant warmth on her arm. She turned to see Eric's concerned eyes hovering over her own.

He held her stare, searching deep into her tired, worn eyes. He saw a mix of fear, hurt and relief swirling around her dull green irises. Seeing all these emotions prompted his hand to squeeze her arm, his way to non-verbally reassure her that she was safe now.

"Cal, are you alright?" she heard a concerned voice call from behind her left shoulder.

Turning to see Ryan, she broke Eric's contact on her arm, immediately feeling nervous without it.

"Yeah, Ryan, I'm fine. Thank you," she reassures, all too perfectly, despite her very recent ordeal.

Feeling Eric close behind her, she felt his long breaths tickle the hairs on her head. His closeness forced her eyes down noticing the evidence bag in Ryan's hands.

"I'm glad Cal, I was really worried about you, you know," he said winking as he titled his head to look at her downward gaze. "Oh," he continued, "H wanted me to collect the gun for evidence. We want this guy put away quickly for what he did to you," he said concern still evident in his young voice.

Nodding, she gave him a quick smile before he began to exit with the bag.

She turned her back to his retreating form, her shoulder now millimetres away from Eric's.

"Ryan," she called, never moving her current position to face him, in fear of her emotions spilling out.

"Yeah, Calleigh," he responded, his face twisted, slightly confused at her stance.

"His-uh... His car is parked directly across t-the street from the en-entrance," she spit out, her self control slowly slipping.

"Okay, Cal," he replied, his brows furrowing. Receiving a small warning glance from Eric, he took his exit leaving the two alone, knowing Calleigh wouldn't want him to see her upset.

Taking Ryan's exit as a cue, Eric reaches an arm around her placing his hand gently on her mid back, before looking down at her face.

He slowly took her in; eyes drawn shut, arms crossed over her chest and her shoulders sagging inwards. He noticed remnants of tears grasping her long eyelashes, begging exit from her beautiful, worn eyes.

"Cal," he whispered simply, softly.

And that was all it took. His gentle voice, threw her over the edge and she began to collapse toward him, sobs beginning to take over her body.

An emotional fog covering every part of her brain prevented her from any rational thought or control of her small, aching body. Fear plagued her, each snapshot of her kidnappers muzzle pointing directly at her face coursing through her, flashing behind her burning eyelids. _'Bitch' _echoing through her ears, feeling as though they were the last words she'd ever hear.

He caught her as she slowly fell into his body, instantly wrapping his strong arms around her protectively. He held her there for a moment, feeling her completely limp, her body quaking with each sob that wracked through her tiny frame.

His mind filled with her anguish, his stomach weighing on him with worry for this woman he loved so dearly. He began to hug her tighter as he imagined the things this disgusting excuse for a man could've done to her.

After several long minutes he slowly felt her regain some strength and loosened his grip on her, slowly moving her toward a chair.

Tears still flooding her eyes, face pale and moistened, he watched as her neck bobbed back and forth as he tried his hardest to gently place her onto the chair.

She sat there, occasional sobs still causing her breath to hitch in her throat, her eyes constantly flowing with more pain, more tears.

After placing her on the chair, he kneeled beside her, placing a hand carefully on her knee, still allowing for closeness, but carefully acknowledging the imaginary physical boundary that she had always drawn. Although she was in no state to deny his touch, he knew he couldn't take advantage of her emotional state.

Never averting his gaze from her face, he grabbed his cell phone and called for Horatio to send some paramedics to check Calleigh out. She hadn't complained of any injuries, but he was quite certain the criminal that her hostage wouldn't have let her off without leaving his mark on her.

"Calleigh," he whispered again, softly. "I called the paramedics. They're going to come and take a look at you soon. Are you hurt anywhere?"

Bringing a hand up to her face to wipe the streams off her checks, her head begins to slowly float down at him, her eyes squinting at him, body hiccoughing still.

Noticing her chin tremble, his mind shifts into panic mode. _He hoped to God that man hadn't raped her._

As soon as he'd heard Seth McAdams' prior offence slip from Natalia's lips, his mind automatically went to that place, before immediately picturing the most painful way to eliminate this monster after they'd found Calleigh.

"He didn't, uh-" he cut off, not sure if he should push her or not, "-he didn't ... rape you... did he?" he asked, the word _rape_ making his insides knot and forcing bile to seep into his throat.

He watched as her body began to wretch again, tears spilling faster from her eyes. His heart began beating a million times a second, before his relief came in her weakly shaking her head from side to side.

"Oh, thank god Calleigh," he said before meandering his arm around her shoulders.

She instantly fell into him once again, her mind fogged, her body flopping into his solid frame.

"I-I-I, I c-c-can't. Can't," she choked out from under his chin. He could feel her frustration weakly pulsating against him at her inability to communicate.

"I know Cal, its okay," he hushed, pulling her into his lap on the floor.

Her body felt so small, so limp on him that he had to grasp her tightly, while keeping his hand constantly running reassuring motions along her back, through her hair and along her arms. It was all he could do to make sure she wouldn't just disintegrate in his arms.

The thick layer of emotion covering her brain, eventually began to lift; the calming waves of fingers lightly roaming her body lulled her into a state of calm, somewhere between sleep and consciousness.

It was only until she felt Eric's warm breath on her ear that she came round, "The paramedics are here".

She slowly, with his help, lifted herself off of his lap as he positioned her on the chair, as per request of the paramedic.

He watched her off to the side, as she only answered the paramedic's questions with nods and blank stares. He watched as the woman shone a flash light into Calleigh's pallid eyes and checked her face for bruising. He almost jumped out of his skin when he saw her painfully wince as the young woman 

massaged her ribs and abdomen. When she asked Calleigh how it had happened she'd barely whispered that he'd knocked her down and kicked her.

Eric felt his blood boil as he pictured that pathetic animal kicking her. _'I swear to god, I'm gonn-'_

"Excuse me sir, but she's going to need to go to the hospital for some x rays, sometime within the next 24 hours for one of her injuries. I suspect broken ribs, but I'd like to be sure. I also found some minor cuts and bruises on her body, as well as some swelling on her head, mostly likely from a blunt object, maybe a fist," the short brunette told him.

"Okay, thank you so much Miss," he responded, nodding his appreciation quickly to her, before bringing his gaze back to Calleigh.

As the paramedics gathered their equipment, he simply watched her slumped form sitting on the chair. Her hair was still as golden as always, although a little frizzy, her small shoulders slumped forward again, slowly rising and falling with her exhausted breaths.

After watching her slip into slumber, he walked to her side, gently shaking her arm, "Cal, c'mon. Let me take you home," he said his voice gentle.

"Hmm," she moaned lightly as he brought her to a standing position.

After feeling her shift her weight onto her own feet, he left an arm snaked around her waist as they exited the room.

"Thank you, Eric," she said quietly, her normal voice slowly finding her again.

"I'm always here for you, Cal. Always here," he says, as they passed through the threshold and into the Miami sun.

--

A/N- Okay, sooo... Good? Bad? I really was unsure about posting this, so I would love some feedback!

Reviews Love!


	2. Wait for you

Disclaimer- All recognizable characters and situations belong to CSI: Miami, 'Wait for you lyrics - Nelly Furtado ...

A/N- Alright, so there were a few reviewers who asked me to write a sequel, and I was reluctant to but here it is. I was set on it being a one-shot, but then all of you had to be such wonderful reviewers and I had to be gullible, and here we are. Since I hadn't planned on writing a sequel, I didn't really have an idea for where this would go so I put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard, rather) and this is what came out. So now it is not really a sequel because I do plan on posting atleast onemore chapter after this... yada yada yada.

--

After exiting Club Descent, Eric had quietly led a hazed Calleigh toward his hummer, walking at a slow pace beside her, an arm still lingering around her waist.

He noticed she had been quite watchful of her surroundings, her eyes wandering to the people moving along the street, the constant whirring of cars smoothly passing before them on the pavement. He supposed it was calming to her, to watch the people go on about their daily lives, seeming as if nothing bad ever happened.

He opened the door for her and watched as she effortlessly climbed into the hummer, before lightly shutting the door and proceeding to the driver's side. It always amazed him that no matter what state she was in, she was always graceful and elegant, at least in his eyes.

After entering and strapping himself in, he glanced over toward her to find her glued to her window. The side of her face was bathed in the afternoon sun, her facial features looked soft, but exhausted and it put him at ease knowing she was at least distracted by what was going on outside, instead of stuck on the analytical thoughts that would normally be rushing through her mind. He knew it wouldn't be long before the shock lifted and these thoughts would begin. He knew that these thoughts would plague her mind for months to come, although she would never let it be known.

He knew because it had been that way after he had been shot. The pieces that he could remember haunted him long after, even to this day. But mostly he knew because he knew Calleigh.

The ride was particularly quiet, and Calleigh was thankful for that. She had basically broken down in front of him earlier and although it didn't seem to bother her right now, she was sure she'd feel guilty for it later.

The fog from her crying episode had finally cleared, but still she couldn't bring herself to say anything, nor did she know what to say. She knew she didn't want to talk about it to anyone until she got a proper hold on things herself. She felt thankful that Eric didn't make her feel like she had to say anything, so there she sat in silence with him, watching the world pass by her in streaks out her window.

Suddenly, Calleigh snapped out of her trance and realised the car had stopped moving, and before she could reach for her door handle, Eric was already there, holding it open for her. He extended his hand to her and she took it, feeling her cheeks slightly flush as she stepped out of the vehicle.

After dropping her hand (much to his dismay), he silently followed her up to her apartment, taking her silent invitation to walk her to her door.

As they reached her manila door, _apartment 5_, he recalled; she turned to him, her eyes cast downward.

"So," she started, fiddling with her keys, "I um-"she starts, pausing to let out a breath, "-thank you Eric," she says quietly.

To anyone, it may not have been much, but to him in meant everything. Her timid voice combined with the lingering fear and desperation in her eyes tugged at his heart strings.

"It's no problem at all Cal," he says, his hand lovingly squeezing her arm as her eyes cast downward again.

"Really," he pushes, ducking his head to catch her gaze, smiling when he does.

He reached down for her face, cradling it softly in his palm. He was surprised when she leaned into his touch, her eyes fluttering closed, her face looking more relaxed than he had seen it in a long time.

"I'm just glad you're okay Cal," he whispers, his warm breath slipping over her lips, causing her to raise her eyes to his.

She looked into his eyes, her pupils slowly moving side to side, as if questioning the moist pools of brown before her.

And before he could express what she was seeking, his lips were on hers; unmoving, pressing lightly.

He felt her exhale on his face, and that was enough to undo him right there. He would've completely unravelled, if it weren't for her softly sucking at his top lip.

And almost as soon as the kiss had started it was over. He felt her hands softly pushing at his chest, making only an inch or two of space between them. She let her hands drop, one coming to his wrist and clutching it softly.

When he'd felt her push away, his mind had gone into panic mode; _shit!_

He hadn't wanted to take advantage of her when she was vulnerable. He didn't mean for this to happen. He didn't want to lose her. Not for this. Not ever...

She must've seen alarms going off in his eyes, because before he could panic any further she spoke:

"Eric," she half whispered, averting his wide eyes from the stucco wall behind her, "it's ok".

"What?" he said, almost too suddenly, as if it were a reflex.

"It's... okay. I'm not mad. I-" she stopped, her words breathy.

"Really?" he asked his voice low.

"Yeah..." she replies, her mind temporarily voided of complete sentences.

"Well... what does this mean then?" he asks, wincing as his mind racing through all the things he hoped she could say.

Hearing her exhale heavily, he brings his eyes back to her face. Her eyes are concentrating over his shoulder, her brows furrowed.

She takes in an equally heavy breath before turning to look up at him. His eyes are waiting expectantly, which unnerves her more than their closer-than-normal proximity.

"It means-" she stops, clearly frustrated at her lack of words, "It means, I don't know", she finishes, as if it explains everything.

He turns away from her, trying to hide is disappointment, his anger.

"Hey," she starts, stopping him as he attempts to walk away, "I'm not...I'm not saying no to anything," she says, this time making direct eye contact with him.

He nods, reluctant to rejoice.

"But, I'm not promising anything yet," she says, this time quietly.

"Yet?" he says, a smile forming at his lips.

"Yet," she replies with finality. "I just... I mean, I just need time...to figure things out. I haven't even started to process what happened. And, I know I imagine myself wonder woman, but I don't think I could deal with that and this," she explains, motioning between their bodies at her last word.

"Okay Cal. I-I'm sorry for...springing that on you," he says shyly, emphasising his words, in reference to the kiss.

She nods, accepting his apology, giving his wrist a gentle squeeze.

"Just promise you'll call if you need anything," he says affectionately, finally taking her hand off of his wrist, and cupping it in his.

Nodding again at him she smiles, her eyes turning downward to focus on their joined hands.

"So, I'll call you soon. I just need-"

"Time," he finishes sweetly, "I know Cal," he smiles, reassuring her.

"Okay," she says relieved, her face soft, before reaching up to plant a simple kiss on his cheek.

"Bye Cal," he says grinning, his face tingling from where her lips had brushed.

"Bye," she smiles, catching his contagious grin.

--

A/N- Well... not so sure about this one, would **love **feedback. It's kind of a filler-ish chapter I guess, and chapter 3 should be up this weekend, so thanks for reading, I hope you review!


	3. Take time to realize

**A/N**- Okay. I know, I suck. I suck I suck I suck. I am not impressed with myself. It's been far too long since I have updated. I could pull tons of excuses out but who wants to hear that? So here is chapter three. It's nice and long (ish), so I hope you enjoy and keep with this story even though I suck (a lot).  
Summary and chapter name are lyrics to Realize - Colbie Callait

**Appreciation**- Jenny, who just makes things easier and is undoubtedly hilarious and one of the strongest girls I know... All of you WONDERFUL people who are still willing to read even though it's been months since the last chapter. Thanks SO much guys! (Hopefully there will be some of you haha). And last, but not least, to Jodie, who I told I was going to dedicate this chapter to for her birthday, but alas, I suck, SO it's very late. So here's to Jodie for kicking my butt into writing and giving me these three elements to smooth things along;

1.) Flowers

2.) A Black Dress

3.) A Frog

Happy Reading :)... (P.S- this is NOT beta'ed, as is all of my other stories, many apologies for any mistakes).

--

"_Hello?"_

"_Hey, it's Eric..."he stopped there awaiting a reaction from the other end. All he got was the sound of her breath catching in her throat. It was so faint, he wasn't sure he heard it at all. Continuing after receiving no verbal response, he spoke again, "I just wanted to make sure you were okay. It's been over 24 hours, and the paramedic said you should get X-rays for your ribs and if you need a ride I'm not busy so I-"_

"_Eric," she said softly, cutting him off from his nervous speech, "I don't think that's a good idea."_

"_Why not?" He asks immediately._

"_Because Eric, I told you I needed time. Besides, I am perfectly capable of driving myself to the hospital," she replies, her voice in an even tone. _

"_Oh. Okay, well I just wanted to make sure you were really ... okay" he pauses, trying to bait her into giving him something._

"_Well, I went to the hospital early this morning," she states simply._

"_And?" he questions._

"_And... I'm fine Eric, nothing's seriously wrong, I'll recover in about a week or two," she says as if it's nothing, attempting to shoot down every worry he throws at her._

"_So they aren't broken?" he pushes._

"_No, Eric. They're just bruised... Can we-" she pauses, taking in a small breath, "-not talk about this?"_

"_Oh... sure, sorry," he says timidly._

"_No, I'm sorry; I just need to not talk about this. I promise I am fine. Thanks for checking up though," she supplies, her voice softening with each word. _

"_No problem," he says, trying to hide his grin through the phone, as if she can see him. _

_Hearing papers shuffling at her end he calls her name, "Calleigh?"_

"_I'm going to be going away for a week or two," she blurts, as if it was squirming to leave her lips this whole time._

"_Where?" he asks, his voice low._

"_Illinois" she says quickly._

"_Why?"he returns, like he didn't actually know._

"_Well, my little brother Aaron just moved out there with his wife Carrie and my new niece Alyssa. He called me yesterday, and I haven't seen him in about 3 years. I thought I'd help them get settled in and meet my first little niece," she says almost longingly, happiness evident in her voice._

"_That sounds great Cal, congratulations," he says, genuinely happy for her._

"_Yeah," she agrees. _

"_Well, you sound pretty busy, so have a safe trip and I guess I will see you at work," he tries to say, but it comes out as more of a question._

"_Yeah, I'll see you," she says, her voice sincere._

"_Bye, Cal"_

"_Bye... Oh, and Eric?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_I'm-I'm not running," she says quietly, nerves underlying in her tone._

"_Okay," he says firmly, letting her know he believes her._

"_Bye"_

_Click. _

That had been three weeks ago, and since the awkward phone call they'd shared, Eric had only heard that she'd gotten into and out of Illinois safely and was now back at home.

He hadn't stopped thinking about her the entire time, hoping she would call or even email. But she didn't, and it didn't really surprise him. She had been through and ordeal, and it was easier for her to avoid the whole _them _thing.

But the exhilarated feeling from her openness had pulled him through those three weeks. The fact that she had trusted him enough to ask for time and space; trusted him not to react like all the other men in her past had...The simple fact that for a few seconds, she had responded to their light kiss.

But Eric was getting a little anxious to talk to her, even just see her.

And that is why he had been staring at the tire treads in front of him for over half an hour, the constant game of question and reassurance plaguing his mind.

"Eric," a voice from the doorway sounded, the all familiar slow voice reaching his ears.

"H," he replies, hastily moving his papers on top of each other and meeting his boss's eyes.

"Any match on our tire treads from the scene?" He asks slowly, cocking his head to the side to see the evidence on the desk.

"Uh, not yet. There's, uh, some ... inconsistencies on one section of the tread that I have to look closer at," he says, becoming more comfortable with his lie.

"Well, when you finish up here, take Calleigh with you back to scene, I want you to go over the back of the house please," he explain, the kind wrinkles of his eyes turning upward with a knowing smile.

"She's back at work?" he says instantly, not holding back any shock.

"She is," he supplies, before exiting the room, the continuous smile upon his lips.

--

He strode cautiously towards the fire arms lab, kit in hand, different versions of conversations running through his mind.

He reached the glass door finally, extending a nervous palm towards the door before stopping himself.

"I'm really glad you're back Calleigh," he heard Ryan say boyishly through the door.

Gritting his teeth, he leaned in closer to listen more effectively.

"Aw, well thanks Ryan," she said in her kind southern voice. "And the flowers are beautiful," she adds, and he can picture the bright smile accompanied with that line through the door.

"No problem, I'll talk to you lat-" he stops, the door mid swing, to see Eric Delko with his body hovering in the doorway.

"Delko!" he says cheerily.

_Crap. _Now there's no way he can change his mind and leave.

At the call of Eric's name, Calleigh perks up from behind her desk to look past Ryan.

"Yeah, Hi Wolfe," Eric grimaces, barely acknowledging the young man in front of him, as his eyes immediately were drawn to the blonde behind him.

"Do you know if Valera finished my samples from the Vic's bedroom yet?" Ryan asks, completely unaware of the building tension between his co workers.

Averting his eyes to the form in front of him he says, "No, I don't. Go ask her yourself, I've been analyzing treads all morning."

"Ok, fine. I'll go right now then," he replies mocking Eric's previous annoyed tone and rolling his eyes as he walks out the door.

At the exit of Ryan, Calleigh's gaze returns to her reports, while Eric's eyes move back to her shining blonde head.

After several long moments, Eric walks over to her desk, examining the pretentious vase of flowers settled on the corner of her desk. Wrinkling his nose in disgust, he lets out a small chuckle.

The chuckle prompts her to bring her eyes up to his, a small smile forcing its way onto the corners of her lips.

"What?" she asks, as if she doesn't really know.

"Nothing, it's just ... Nothing. I'm not going to-" he pauses, another small chuckle escaping his throat.

"You're not going to what?" she asks playfully, thankful for the current lightness of their conversation.

"I'm not going to-" he pauses again, taking in the full effect of the monstrosity once more, "I'm not going to make fun of you or Ryan and his little suck-up-to-Calleigh gift."

"Good. And I'm not going to remind you for the thousandth time to be nice to him," she counters teasingly, smiling as her eyes fall down to the papers on her table.

He shoots a mock glare at her, thankful that she's looking at the table and not him.

And so quickly, the air thickens. The awkward feelings and unanswered questions pollute the air, and neither has the courage to break the silence.

"So," he says, contemplating a safe question, "how was your vacation?"

"It was good. Alyssa was amazing and beautiful," she says smiling, the ghost of a longing look leaving her eyes.

"That's your niece, right?" He asks, although he already knows who the little girl is.

"Yeah, she's the first girl; my older brother has two boys, so it's great to add a little Duquesne girl." She says smiling, brushing off his attempt to gain points with her.

"Sounds really great Cal," he says, smiling.

"It is," she smiles back, looking directly into his eyes, her facial features soft.

He returns her gaze, before casting his eyes downward feeling a blush crawl into his coffee coloured cheeks. She sees this and internally curses for losing herself in him.

She searches for something to say, but it's so goddamn hard with him. She doesn't know what to say, what she wants.

Noticing her internal debate, he clears his throat. "H wanted us to go back to the crime scene and comb through the back of the house."

"Oh, sure. I'll uh- just get my kit and we can drive there together," she says advancing to the side counter containing her kit.

--

Half an hour later, they find themselves beginning to scan the first back room of the home of the late Carol Burner.

"Okay, so the Vic was found in her bedroom, which is straight across from this room... And there were smears of motor oil and green fabric found on the body, correct?" she asks, scanning around the computer desk with her flashlight.

"Wow, you've done your homework," he says chuckling in her direction. "How long have you been back for?" he says, quickly making himself busy examining the window sill.

"Um, I got back late last night. Couldn't sleep so I came to the lab and caught up on some cases," she says slowly, wiping her glove along the wall by the left corner of the desk.

Before he has the chance to reply she speaks, "Hey, it looks like something was moved along this wall. Look, there's a long drag mark right here," she says tracing it.

"Yeah," he says coming up behind her, his eyes following her fingers, coming to rest on some sort of animal tank.

"Ugh, I wonder what's in there," she says, scanning the abundance of most soil and plants.

"Um... Oh! It's some kind of frog," he says pointing to the back corner of the tank. "And it's a really weird shade of green."

"Wow, that is odd," she says turning her head. "Oh my god!"

"What?" he says quickly.

She laughs a little before saying, "I think it's a Barking Tree Frog. My brothers used to try to catch them all the time when we would visit my cousins out in Georgia. I've seen a few here too," she says still examining the odd-coloured specimen.

"Let's shift this bad boy back to its rightful spot and see if you can't find us some evidence," he says moving to the other end of the tank.

"On three," she says positioning herself across from him, gripping the tank. "One, two, three."

In one quick movement, the tank slid back, revealing a few smudged fingerprints preserved in a black substance the two CSI's assumed to be motor oil.

"Aha!" Calleigh says smugly, eyeing the prints, receiving a deep chuckle from her partner.

"Wait a second," he says a few seconds later, his faze falling to where the frog had been positioned before the tank had been moved.

Reaching into the tank, he pulled out a bright green cloth that had been scrunched underneath the frog, which had now migrated underneath another plant, hiding from the strange beings invading its home.

Pulling the partially soil covered cloth apart revealed more smears of a black substance which they again assumed to be oil and a small logo for a local car repair garage.

"Oh this is too good," she says, smirking at him.

--

After collect a few more fibres and samples from the rest of the rooms, the pair exited the quiet house and drove back to the lab to start testing and wait for news from Horatio and Frank on the car garage.

Eric and Calleigh found themselves both in the lab, Eric running prints from the wall and Calleigh collecting trace from the un-usable prints and the cloth.

"So, what did you do while I was gone," she asks casually, trying to break the silence in the room.

He had to choose his words carefully here. Should he tell her the truth or go with a generic response.

"Uh, nothing really," he says, cowardly choosing the latter.

"Oh," she says, expecting more.

"Well, I uh-I... thought about you a lot," he says, lowering down to snap a photo of the last usable print.

She smiles slightly, though he doesn't catch it. "I thought about you too while I was gone," she admits, swabbing a piece of the cloth.

Grinning slightly idiotically, he turns to her and says, "And?"

She froze. "And... I-I don't know," she admits somewhat truthfully.

"I think that we need to talk some more... I feel like-"

Just then, the young CSI Ryan Wolfe walked into the door, planting himself across the table from Calleigh, completely unaware of the pending conversation between the two senior CSI's.

"I heard you got some good trace from one of the rooms in the office room of the house?" He says, pinning his hands onto the table.

"Yes, we did," she says quickly glance from Eric to Ryan.

"Want me to run anything for you?" He asks her cheerfully.

"Well, I was actually just headed over to trace to run a few swabs and some fibres. You can help if you like," she says gathering the evidence bags sprawled out in front of her.

"Sure," he says, leading her out of the lab and holding the door open.

Eric's eyes followed her out of the lab, catching her look back apologetically at him.

'_Wolfe,'_ he thinks, grumbling internally. He was actually somewhat friends with the guy, but lately the sucking up to Calleigh and bad timing was making him rethink some things.

--

It wasn't until the early evening that Calleigh and Eric saw each other in the locker room, both heading home.

"How did things go on your end," she asks him, reaching to the top shelf to grab an old water bottle.

"Well, there were two sets of prints on the wall and H brought in two guys from Orvall's Auto Shop," he supplies, the sound of his tongue rolling with his Cuban accent sending a shiver down her spine.

"Oh, that's great," she commends. "The oil and fibres Ryan and I ran matched the same two men. I just hope we get the right guy away as soon as possible."

"Yeah, me too," he says slowly, contemplating his next question.

Silence fell between the two for a few minutes while each packed up for the night.

"When you said we needed to talk some earlier..." he says, trailing off.

"Yeah?" she says, her eyes focused on the contents of her overflowing purse.

"Do you, um, want to go out to dinner and uh- talk... tonight?" He stumbles, trying to hold back his slight nerves.

Still focused on her purse, she slung it over her shoulder and faced him, her lips curved upward. "I-don't... know".

"Oh," he says, sounding disappointed. "Okay, we can talk another time. You are probably-uh, tired," he says, trying to be supportive and respectful of her space.

"I'm sorry. I just-" she cuts off, exhaling in frustration.

"No don't be. You still need space," he says picking up his gym bag and turning toward the door. "I'll just see you tomorrow Cal."

"Okay... Goodnight Eric," she says, sounding defeated.

'_What the hell is wrong with me,' _she thinks, watching his slumped shoulders as he walks out of the door.

'_What do I want,'_ she asks herself. Over and over. After internally saying that mantra too many times, (just enough time to ensure Eric was completely out of Miami Dade and on his way home), she exited the locker room, her mind now set on what she wanted.

--

Eric arrived home, slumping into his apartment, dropping his bag in front of the kitchen table. Pouring himself a cold glass of orange juice, he made his way into the bedroom and changed into an old college tee and some basketball shorts.

Gulping down the orange juice, he went back into the main room and removed his case files from his bag and laid them on his coffee table, switching on the television to the Olympic Games.

Much to his liking, he found the men's swimming relay about to begin. He sat back enjoying his favourite sport, watching as Australia began with a slight lead.

After too many commercials, he finally caught the end of the closest race he'd ever seen, with USA taking the win.

This lifted his dampened spirits quite a bit and he stood up to stretch out after being stuck on the couch for too long.

Suddenly, a small tapping came from the door and he casually made his way over. Glancing in the peep hole, he saw Calleigh nervously swaying from side to side, clad in a simple cute, beautiful black dress, clutching a small, black hand bag with both hands.

Opening the door with knit eyebrows, he looked questioningly at her as her eyes darted to him.

"I would actually, um, really like to go to dinner," she says, smiling nervously.

--

**A/N-** Reviews please? Each review recieves a dart board with my picture as the background and 3 complementary darts! Hah.


	4. Thank you for opening the window

A/N- Well then. Here's chapter 4, I apologize for the lateness and my crappy updating skills. Thanks to all of you are reading and favouriting.

Disclaimer- I do not own any recognizable characters or situations mentioned anywhere within this story.

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__Opening the door with knit eyebrows, he looked questioningly at her as her eyes darted to him._

"_I would actually, um, really like to go to dinner," she says, smiling nervously._

He stood there unable to come up with anything to say, taking in her appearance, the sheer look of uncertainty and self deprecation covering her lightly made-up face.

"Are you-"she began, leaning to peek past him into his apartment, but instead caught his gaze. She couldn't quite pinpoint the type of look he was giving her, but he was undoubtedly staring at her for too long and that made her uneasy.

Huffing out a small breath she turned to leave, "I'm sorry."

She began to retreat from his doorstep, when finally he stopped her with his words, "No, wait."

She stopped immediately, her back still facing him, waiting for him to say something... a_nything_ to make her feel less selfish and idiotic for coming there in the first place.

"Uh, come in," he gestured, although she couldn't see him.

She slowly turned again to face him, but his eyes were cast downward in avoidance, his hand busy scratching the back of his neck.

She quickly shuffled into his apartment, stopping just right of the doorframe, allowing him to walk in after her.

He stiffly walked past her, straight to the table in the middle of the room, making sure to put some distance between them.

She looked nervously around the apartment, anywhere but the silent man in front of her.

Stretching his arms to lean back onto the table, he spoke finally, "What made you change your mind?"

She'd expected this question from him and had thought about it the entire way there. But suddenly, words failed her (as they seemed to do around him).

"I-just. My mind is crazy. I can't... think," she pauses looking at him directly, eyes pleading for him to understand.

When he didn't speak, she cast her eyes elsewhere, not ready to see the expression on his face at her next statement, "So, I'm going with what I feel".

His ears perked up noticeably, his eyes immediately coming to her face, which was looking elsewhere. He smirked slightly, "alright," he said moving toward the back of his apartment.

"Where are you going?"

"I can't go out to dinner looking like this, can I," he reasoned, continuing the course for his room.

"No," she whispered to herself, trying to hide the grin pushing its way across her mouth.

--

After changing into some appropriate (incredibly sexy) dinner attire, Eric had insisted on driving and had led them to an intimate little restaurant facing the beach.

Upon entering the doors, Eric's hand found her elbow, lightly guiding her between the bustles of filled tables to one tucked in the corner.

She looked around, the dim light from the lamps above warming the dark wood of the table, the colourful mosaics on the wall shining with the same dancing light, as if the bulbs above were candles.

"Wow," she breathed. "This place is beautiful".

"I'm glad you like it," he smiled. "My old diving partner's sister owns the place. I used to eat here almost every meal when I was in underwater recovery."

"Well, then it must be good."

"Eric!" came a squealing voice from across the room.

"Ah, Tia," he smiled standing up and accepting a hug from a tanned, curly haired younger woman.

"You haven't been down in so long," she said playfully punching his arm.

"I'm sorry," he said smiling sheepishly. "I know how much you love seeing me every day," he laughed, earning another playful shot to the bicep.

His gaze fell to Calleigh who was smiling, quietly watching the two interact. "Tia, this is Calleigh," he said introducing the two.

"Hello Tia," she uttered smoothly, extending her hand.

"Hi Calleigh," she said grinning. She stood back, nudging Eric in the ribs, the same grin stuck on her face, while she pretended to grab her notepad from in her apron. "Well, uh, what can I get for you two?"

Eric stood there, cheeks rosy, eyes wide staring at Calleigh. "Why don't you surprise us Tia," he laughed, patting her shoulder as she practically sashayed toward the waiter doors.

"I am so sorry," he blushed, laughing as he sat down across from her again.

All she could do was laugh with him as their eyes connected.

"As you probably noticed, she's become kind of like a sister. She teases me about everything."

Still giggling she replied, "Yeah, she got you a couple of times in the arm too."

"That's Tia for you," he smiled.

As soon as he spoke, Tia came back her arms full of large colourful dishes of steaming food.

"Wow, that was fast," Calleigh said, eyeing each plate keenly.

"Special order," she winked. "Enjoy".

"This looks delicious," Calleigh spoke, placing a napkin in her lap.

"Dig in," he said playfully, noticing her wide eyes.

--

Their dinner was filled with stories and many laughs. The atmosphere in the small eatery was light, and made them both feel at ease. Neither broached the topic they both knew had to be dealt with.

After paying a ridiculously low amount of money for the pile of food they were served, they made their way onto the street, the salty breeze a welcome change from the humid innards of the little restaurant.

"I love this time of day," she murmured, shifting her long hair over her shoulder, exposing her neck to him. "It's not too hot, and just... so relaxing."

"Yeah, it is," he agreed, watching as her eyes fluttered, shut allowing the breeze to cool her face.

"Did you like the food?" He gulped, averting his eyes as soon as she opened hers.

"Yeah, everything was amazing," she beamed.

"I've wanted to take you there for a while."

She turned to him, but his eyes were scanning the shoreline. "Really?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'd planned on taking you for a while now... I almost thought we wouldn't get here," he said, not liking the way his words just tumbled out of his mouth.

Calleigh noticed the slight wince in his features as he spoke, knowing he was trying to go about this delicately.

"I almost thought we wouldn't either. I am sorry about earlier," she said. He looked into her eyes. They were filled with honesty and guilt.

"It's okay, you know," he admitted, taken aback by the amount of raw emotion they presented.

"It isn't though. You don't deserve any of this. I'm just...-"

"-I know," he nodded, reaching through her fingers and giving them a light squeeze. "And I'll wait until you figure it out."

"Don't," she said immediately, slipping her fingers away from his, feeling slightly sickened for almost accepting his proposal. "I didn't mean that... I-"

She stopped in her tracks, Eric following suit immediately after and turning back to face her. She stood there looking completely torn, staring straight at him her mouth opening and closing as if to say something.

"Cal, it's okay to be unsure, I don't even really know what the hell I am doing either. I just know that I feel something for you, and I can't let that get away."

She nodded, her eyes searching for something to say that didn't make her sound like an emotional mess. He watched her struggle, still frozen in place and decided to urge her along a little, "What happened to going with what you feel?"

_Oh. _

"I don't even think I know what I feel. I know that yes, I have feelings for you. Sometimes they feel like more than they should be... Sometimes-,"she stuttered, "Sometimes it feels right for you to just be my best friend. I can't sort out what's real and what's my mind going into protective mode," she spoke slowly, trying to shake off the vulnerability.

He respected why she felt that way. She'd been betrayed by many men in her life, and losing the only genuine one, never mind her good friend scared her into retreat. Despite that, he could sense under all the baggage and uncertainty she truly wanted to be with him, and he would make sure she wouldn't regret it.

"What can I do-" he asked, moving slowly towards her, "-to help you make up your mind".

He kept moving until he'd reached a point where their bodies weren't touching at all, but still close enough to hear each other's nervous breathes. His proximity suddenly cleared her mind of all she'd began to over think, her instincts sharp and ready to react.

She blinked hard, her body sparking with butterflies. "I... don't know," she breathed, turning her face up, mostly unaware of the perfect angle her lips were at to be captured by his.

"Well," he breathed back, liking the way her body was instinctually moving in sync with his own. "Just stop me if I am doing something that feels wrong."

With that he began the slow descend towards her lips, his eyes watching hers flutter close as his hands ghosted over her hips. He felt her hesitant hand come to rest on his collar bone, lightly pulling herself up to almost close the distance between them.

He felt the softness of her top lip barely graze his as he gave way to his eyelids and let them fall shut. His hips swayed towards hers while his hands gently guided hers until they collided. Her lips fell softly onto his, pressing firmer into his mouth as he cocked his head sideways.

He allowed himself to press his mouth against hers, suckling gently for a few long moments before retracting. His hands still in place, leaving his lips only inches away.

Her moist lips were parted, her breath caught somewhere between her throat and her tingling lips. Her whole body felt as if tiny fireworks were crackling beneath her skin while her heart throbbed incessantly inside her chest. Slowly, she took in a breath and released it.

"That-," she managed to say quietly, "-definitely didn't feel wrong."

"Well then," he replied breathily, leaning his lips in millimetres away from hers, "I guess you found your answer."

She could feel his warm breath dry what was left of him on her lips and suddenly, she didn't like being without it. So closing the distance, she reached another hand up to his chest, sliding it behind his neck and pulled herself up to join them once more.

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A/N- Hmm.. Let me know your thoughts... constructive criticism, ideas, etc... all are welcome. Thanks for reading.


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